The Unlock-Grants course includes some handy tools for the grantseeker that I developed to make our work easier and more efficient, our applications stronger, and our decision-making less stressful. By organizing how we do our work and get through all we have to do, we can accomplish more, increase our output (without burning out), and increase our chances of grant success.
Part of grant-seeking is having a good match with a funder, which we discussed in Part 1 of this two-part series. My Funder Prospect Scorecard allows us to gauge whether a funder is a good fit for what we are seeking to fund with grants.
Increasing our chances of grant success, however, depends on more than just a strong funder match. Lining up a great funder will only get you so far in being awarded a grant from them. You must also have a strong program to pitch to them, and that’s where my second tool for this little series comes in: my Program Fundability Scorecard.
Is it in your telling of the program’s story, the writing?
Or could it be something more organic, more foundational, and more insidious?
If your program’s grant proposals are being turned down regularly, or the awards you receive are not as high as you would expect (looking at the funder’s giving history), or grants are not forthcoming year after year, then it may be time to evaluate the program for its strengths, and perhaps look for some opportunities to improve it.
You can, of course, take the program in question through the Logic Model process (which I strongly advise you do). But if you’re uncomfortable doing that, not familiar enough with that process, or lack the time among your team, then a quick evaluation is in order.
How do you accomplish this evaluation quickly and without any hurt feelings? What’s a clean, unemotional, and fact-based way to assess if a program is strong enough to cut through the mountain of requests your prospective funders receive?
What you can do is put your program through a scoring process I use to make that determination — a scoring process that can even assess exactly where your program’s strengths could be stronger. I use my Program Fundability Scorecard.
Here’s my thought process for the development of that tool and its scoring factors.
The Program Fundability Scorecard:
What are its parameters?
In the Program Fundability Scorecard I developed, the factors I weigh in deciding whether a program is “strong enough” to continue in its current state is determined through a list of six parameters where its total score tells us whether we have a “strong program,” or a “medium-strength program, where redesign is needed,” or a program that is “not viable.” Each of the six parameters receives a score of either “Strong” (2 points!), “Neutral” (so-so, 1 point), or “Weak” (no alignment, zero points).
The six parameters are all based on criteria that any funder would weigh to assess if a program warranted a “pass,” or a second look, or enthusiastic funding. There’s no secret to this sauce; this Scorecard is just my way of taking the guesswork out of making a judgement on a program.
The six parameters are (in no special order):
- Program answers an unmet need
- Program budget Is realistic
- Program staff needs are within reason
- Program impact is aligned with the program cost
- Program has measurable impact
And then I add a factor that could tip the scales with a funder, but usually trips up the applicant:
- Program is sustainable or has sustainability built into the program design (revenue-generating, fee for service, etc.)
There could be other factors to consider, but let’s break down what each of these factors means.
ANSWERS UNMET NEED
Your program needs to be unique to your geographic area, and also help to solve what has been identified as a problem. Does it? Or is your animal shelter one of five in your ZIP code? A program needs to address an expressed and unmet need, needs to show a creative response to a problem that your community has declared needs to be solved.
If instead your program is duplicating local efforts (do some research to find out), and your town doesn’t really need another museum of the Civil War (for instance), then your program gets a score of zero points for this factor. Do your research — because your funders do! Plus, they get applications from all over, including some from nonprofits in your region, and they know if there’s a doubling up of efforts when there’s not the need for it.
REALISTIC BUDGET
Does your program’s budget seem manageable for what you hope to do? I mention budget right up front because many funders look at the program budget before they read a single word of the narrative! They are giving away money, after all!
Take a hard look at your budget and check if it’s too heavy in administrative costs, or too heavy in facility costs, for instance. I once heard from a woman who wanted to build a new building for her start-up nonprofit! Be reasonable in what you plan for the stage your program is in. For a start-up, think about leasing space month-to-month, for instance.
If your program needs a million bucks and you’re asking for $5,000, that is also a red flag to funders. Make sure your asks are aligned with what the funder typically/historically awards to its applicants, and don’t expect top dollar if you are new to that funder.
REASONABLE STAFF NEEDS
Does your program hope to employ five PhD’s, dozens of full-time staff, and an army of admins? Makes sure who you hope to have staff your program is in line with what you hope to do, and what work there is to make it happen. Be clever with your use of manpower, show your prospective funders that you can start at a certain level and ramp up once benchmarks are achieved.
Make certain your stated staff needs are also all working towards the goal of the program, and not acting as padding. Trim where necessary and sensible. And when you trim, you may find that you will achieve a more Realistic Budget (see above entry)!
IMPACT ALIGNED WITH COST
And while we’re talking Budget, make sure your total program budget amount is moderate for what difference you hope to make in the world. Think about your Cost Per Program Participant. Is it reasonable? Or are you only serving ten kids at a million bucks per kid? Prepare to hack up your program costs and make it more affordable and in line with the impact you’re hoping to make.
MEASURABLE IMPACT
I think it became a law at some point that we must include measurable outcomes for our programs. So yes, your program MUST be able to name benchmarks that can be measured; funders are demanding it! Measurable, meaning a solid way to KNOW if you’re having the impact you hope. It’s beyond smiles and happy faces; those are anecdotal. As a for instance, something you can measure when your hunger alleviation program has well-fed kids is better grades in school, less disruptive behavior, improved attendance, lower retention.
What can you measure in your program and when can you measure it? Showing your prospective funder what (and when) you will know your program is meeting (or getting closer to) its goal will strengthen any application. Addressing if your program has no measurable outcomes, or those outcome measures are weak, is a sure way to bolster your program’s strength.
SUSTAINABLE
Does your hunger program feed the kids today? What about tomorrow? And the next day? Building in a way to sustain the program, PLUS designing a program that works to truly eradicate hunger, will really get your prospective funders’ attention.
“Sustainability beyond the life of a grant” is another yardstick our programs are measured by. Make sure you can answer this question by saying more than “we will seek other grants.” That’s not ok. Think about other funding sources; do you have any lined up, or are you cultivating any? Think also about other ways your program can pay for itself; through an income stream that can be developed organically, or via insurance payments or fee-for-service revenue. Sustainability in any of these ways scores high with funders.
You can add or take away any of these factors to make your own scorecard, or use the scorecard to assess any other type of endeavor your organization is doing or wishes to do. The beauty of the scorecard concept is it’s simple, effective, clear, and reliable. No use tossing and turning and wondering “Is it me? Or is it them?” when you can use the scorecard to know for sure that you’re getting turned down constantly because your program needs some work.
If you’re interested in a graphic of my Program Fundability Scorecard or my Prospect Funder Scorecard, contact me and let me know!
